Trip to the DMZ

Summer is knocking on our doorsteps here in Korea. We´ve had weather in the mid to high 80´s everyday this week. I´m definitely not complaining.

Last week was a tough one, but it ended with a successful Open Class which I was extremely relieved to have finished. Friday night was spent celebrating in Gangnam for Chris´birthday.

 

Logically, the next Saturday was spent nursing a hangover, followed by a date with Rachel to go see Star Trek. Which, was totally awesome. I loved it.

Sunday morning I got up at the crack of dawn (5:30) to go on an all day DMZ tour with Nate.

We had a lot of fun goofing around and the tour was interesting. I liked hearing about the history from the tour guide quite a bit.

The DMZ itself is this whole strange thing. It even has a slogan….Nature, Culture and Peace, or something like that. They seem to be promoting the area as a future site representing peace between the two countries and want to develop it as some type of wildlife preserve that will be great…in the future sometime. I didn´t really get it.

Instead of being this hardcore experience, it ended up being a pretty relaxed day. We went through the 2d and 3rd tunnels, which were built in the 50s between North Korea and Seoul so that North korea could attempt underground attacks. We watched some weird videos with strange sound tracks. Generally, I thought the day was a bit long and wanted to see some scarier things (You know….at least one North Korea fleeing through the forest…kidding…) but it was worth the trip. They did have binoculars where you could look at a North Korean town, but there wasn´t much to see.

I looked particularly nerdy on this day. Not sure what was happening there.

 

So, here I am enjoying a day off…on a Thursday! Crazy, huh? It´s Memorial Day and we get a day off which feels surreal. But man is it needed….

June should be a good month. Soon I´ll get paid and then I will be booking my flights around SE Asia and finally my flight back home to Seattle. Crazy stuff. We are also planning to go to Sokcho at the end of the month for a few days. I´m currently spending any free time (and its not much) trying to prep materials for Grad Schools apps and also planning my future trips (Tokyo, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia) which is exciting. I´ve found two M.Ed programs, one in Seattle and one in Austin that seem like they would be a good fit for me and I frequently have restless nights trying to decide which option would be best. I´ll probably have to wait until I come home to make that decision. Any and all opinions welcome on that front.

Turning a Quarter Century: 25 in Review

Fall in Korea is really spectacular. Over the past few weeks the leaves have burst into color.

Most days are sunny and cool: Perfect for sporting teacher sweaters and a latte in the morning before school.

This last week was a week of new beginnings. A new session at school, Halloween decorations put away, Monthly tests graded, everything back to the normal ritual.

My Kindergarten is now one of my favorite classes of the day. Some days they drive me crazy, but I no longer get off for lunch looking frazzled and stressed. The atmosphere in the classroom feels more structured and organized, and I´m thrilled that they have stopped speaking so much Korean. They kids also seem to have finally come to really have a strong relationship with me. At first, it was a battleground. They didn´t like the new rules I set, or being in trouble for not following them. Waiting in lines! Staying in their seats! Not screaming! It was torturous. Why, Grace Teacher? Why these terrible rules? But now, the classroom feels happy and I am happy. Ellie observed me last week and said she was very impressed by the English and organization. Winning! Granted, not every day is great, but its the small battles.

This week I also turned 25. Quarter century baby. After work,  the staff (including my 4th graders) brought me cake and I blew out candles and after work some of us went out for Shabu Shabu (my favorite).

Saturday I took myself out shopping in Myeongdong and bought lots of things. Shoes, a purse, a dress, a ring…..it was glorious. H&M is glorious.

Last night we went out to Gangnam to celebrate with drinks and dancing. I feel very grateful to have such great friends and co-workers and I had a great night.

Turning 25, more than other birthdays, has caused me to stop and reflect on what I´ve done in the last 25 years and what the future holds in store for me. Twenty-five really snuck up on me..where did the time go?

When I look back, I´m happy with the choices I´ve made and feel blessed. I´ve climbed a volcano in Pucon, skiied in the Andes, walked the steps of Machu Picchu, hiked around Patagonia with two of my best friends, danced in the salt flats of Bolivia and star gazed in the Atacama desert, and now I´m eating kimchi in Korea. I´ve written my own column in Chile and interned for a magazine, a publishing house, and a blog. I´ve taught English to all ages and levels. I´ve met the most incredible people in these last 2 or 3 years—of all ages and backgrounds; some rich, some poor. Travellers are a unique sort, and hearing their stories has widen my perspective. The world seems a little smaller, more connected.

Granted, not everyone has the opportunity or desire to travel, and by no means would I think less of someone who hasn´t travelled extensively. But, for my own personal journey into adulthood, it´s been the most important thing that has ever happened to me.

25 feels good. I feel confident, self-assured, and best of all, happy.

After Korea, I will probably go home. From there, I´m looking to perhaps do a Masters in Education…but no matter what, I feel a sense of place. I have confidence that positive energy and hard work lead to good results and that if you treat people well, good karma will follow. The things I used to think were so important; your job title, you ability to make lots of money, your academic status, seem less like badges to be won and more of an end to a means.

I think the most confusing part of being in your mid twenties is that there are TOO MANY choices. Some people are getting married and having babies, which can make you feel like you will be alone forever and never have those things, some people have booming careers, which makes you feel like maybe you´ve taken some wrong steps and should already be in a stable, degree related job right now, and others, which I suppose would include myself, and traveling around, and in some respects, avoiding some hard truths about life. There is no right answer, no right path, and that´s what makes it so confusing.

Pero, así es la vida!

Thank you to everybody who made this a great birthday. Sending lots of love to my friends and family back home in the States!